"I've always been a Notre Dame fan. I've been to several games in person and watch them all the time on TV," Takacs said. "Being a part of this legendary program is a dream come true."

The rising senior had offers on the table from more than 30 schools. Florida, Georgia and Wisconsin were all in hot pursuit of the four-star recruit, as rated by Rivals.com, ESPN and several other recruiting sites and publications. Takacs is ranked No. 234 on the Rivals250, a list of the best prospects in the Class of 2018 done by Rivals.com. He is rated the best senior tight end in Florida and ranked 10th in the nation at his position.

Gulf Coast tight end George Takacs has received scholarship offers from 33 Division I schools, with ...more

Gulf Coast tight end George Takacs has received scholarship offers from 33 Division I schools, with Florida, Notre Dame, Georgia and Wisconsin among his top choices.

Andrew Sodergren/Staff

In a classy gesture, Takacs informed the other finalists of his decision before making it public.

"It was definitely hard. You build relationships with the coaches," Takacs said. "All the schools that recruited me, they're all great places and I would have been honored to be a part of their programs. It just came down to what was the best fit for me. When I arrived on campus (at Notre Dame) on Sunday night, I immediately knew I was going there."

Notre Dame is coming off a rough 2016, a year in which the Fighting Irish went 4-8. That prompted head coach Brian Kelly to make a series of coaching changes, including installing Chip Long as the new offensive coordinator.

"Coach Long is one of the best around," Takacs said. "I'm excited to see what he does with the offense."

Long's offense will make good use of the tight end, one of the three main criteria Takacs, his parents and Gulf Coast coach Pete Fominaya laid out when discussing the talented tight end's future.

"We all sat down and made some requirements," Fominaya said. "First, the school had to be a strong academic school, which Notre Dame definitely is. Secondly, we wanted a school that can compete for national titles, and everyone knows about Notre Dame's history and what they've accomplished. And thirdly, were they a school that used the tight end? Notre Dame had them all and they're George's favorite school, so it was a pretty easy decision for him."

It's been quite the week for Takacs. Last Thursday, he was selected to compete in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. Six days later, he's made a commitment to his dream school.

"You're not going to get too many weeks better than that," Fominaya said.

Takacs said he's glad the decision is over with, allowing him to enjoy the rest of his summer and the upcoming senior year at Gulf Coast.

"It was getting stressful," Takacs said. "I found myself worrying about where I was going to end up. Now, I can just enjoy my senior year and play some football."

An excellent student, Takacs plans to graduate early at Gulf Coast, and then head to South Bend in January.

"I couldn't be more proud of how George has handled himself throughout this entire process," Fominaya said. "He's handled everything with dignity and class. A lot of kids take advantage of the recruiting process and let things get to their heads. George has remained humble throughout He deserves all these accolades, because he's been persistent in making himself a better football player every year."

The Big 15

Beginning July 4, The News-Press and the Naples Daily News will be counting down the top football recruits in Southwest Florida every Tuesday and Friday until the start of the high school football season. The Big 15 features players going into their junior and senior years from Lee and Collier counties, with respect paid to those with hard scholarship offers and those without who possess great potential.